write, produce, direct, shoot, edit, repeat

Archive for July, 2015

The skill of video storytelling is an intuitive blend of artistry and technical know-how. As a full service video production company, St Louis Video Production offers an extensive range of video production services from script to screen. Our clients appreciate both our expertise and our passion for bringing stories of businesses and products to life.

Do you want your customers to know what you are all about? A professionally produced video is a great way to let them know. It offers you a chance to show your operation in its best light. So make the most of it. If you are going to lay it out there for the world to see, make sure you get it right. Here are a few ideas how to prepare your facility for video production.

Before a video crew shows up, a basic first step is to clean your plant… or your office area. Clean up any clutter, and remove papers from desks. For most wide shots, less is more… so be ready to move things to an out of the way area for the shoot day.

For outside areas, try to have the landscaping look as good as possible. Again, remove any trash or clutter.

Take test pictures of your selected areas, and then examine them. Seeing things though the lens of camera is a little different than the naked eye. How is the lighting in your facility? How clean or cluttered does it look? Pass these shots along to your production crew. Include exterior photos too, taking note of when the photo was taken, and the direction in which the sun moves.

For interviews or testimonials, consider the use of a makeup artist to present your team at its best.

Take notes about the electricity available in the areas you will be recording. Make sure all available circuits are working. The less time the crew spends searching for electricity, the more they can spend on capturing video.

Consider buying shirts to make associates look like a team. Not only does it look better on camera, but your employees might appreciate the gift.

Clean up your facility before the camera rolls.

Schedule taping to make best use of manpower. We can help you work up a schedule to make sure you have the right people available for each scene.

Here’s the big problem with the way most people use a teleprompter. Their following the teleprompter. They act like the teleprompter is in charge and that they aren’t in charge. So what happens? All of a sudden people start to sound the same. They talk at the same speed, the same volume, the same tone, and they don’t put pauses in. Can you see how you are about to fall asleep? Now I wasn’t reading from a teleprompter there but that’s how people sound.

St Louis Professional video camera with teleprompter

If you’re going to use a teleprompter, here are the big tips you have to keep in mind. Occasionally you speak louder. Occasionally softer. Sometimes you go a little faster, sometimes you go a little slower. And sometimes you need to pause. Doing those steps will make you sound conversational. You’ve got to do that and then you will be following, not the teleprompter, but the teleprompter will be following you. That’s what you want.